Do you understand why it is so hard to find a free link-shortening service? Because there are not many of them. But if you dig deeper, you will also find that there is hardly any free option when it comes to link shortening services.
Many premium link shortener services charge a fee for usage with restrictions on the number of links that can be shortened in a given period and other limitations. So why should you trust this article and not just take our word for it?
Because we have done extensive research on all these details before coming to the conclusion that Bitly is the best and safest link shortener service among those surveyed. In this article, we will discuss some of the amazing things about link shortening and which is best among the few available options.
What is link shortening?
Link shortening is a technique to shorten the length of a link to a more manageable length. It is meant to be used primarily on social media and other platforms where a user’s ability to publish a link is restricted to a small number of characters.
In most cases, link shortening also has the property of being un-hyperlinkable. This means that the link is not easily accessible or visible, even if it is copied or extracted from the page where it is displayed.
Link shortening is generally used for two purposes – to avoid the problem of having overly long links that may be unwieldy or excessively large, and to preserve privacy and security by preventing access to the actual link that is being shared.
Why URL Shorteners Are Important For Marketing Campaigns
URL shorteners are a very important part of a company’s digital marketing strategy. They help create more clickable links, which allows you to optimize your social media posts on any platform.
You can also use them to make your blog posts more readable, which is especially useful if you have a lengthy article. You can also use them to track the views or clicks on a certain post.
Most marketing campaigns are designed with the goal of driving traffic to a website. In order for that traffic to be tracked and for the campaign to be successful, it is essential to use URL shorteners.
Otherwise, a long URL will be displayed, which will have no impact on search engine rankings. Shorter links are easier to remember and click, which can help increase the number of visitors to your site. The reasons why URL shortener is important for your marketing campaigns are as follows:
Better Audience Insights
With a URL shortener, you can collect data on the number of clicks each link receives, which allows you to have better insights into which links your audience is clicking on.
This data can help you determine which of your marketing campaigns are the most successful, which links are most appealing and which content is resonating with your audience. With these insights, you can optimize your future marketing campaigns and make them more effective.
Because a shortened link is less likely to be copied and shared, you can track how many clicks come from individual links.
This allows you to identify which links are resonating with your audience, which links are being shared, and which links are clickable but aren’t being clicked. Knowing this information can help you better target your audience and make your marketing campaigns more successful.
Improved Tracking and Analytics
A shortened URL makes it easier to track and analyze the number of clicks each link receives. This is especially useful if you have multiple links being shared on social media or in blog posts.
A shortened URL makes it easier to track which links are receiving the most clicks and which links aren’t receiving any clicks at all. A shortened link also makes it easier to integrate your URL shortener into existing analytics platforms. You can track your shortened links on your website, in blog posts and on social media.
This allows you to track all of your marketing campaigns from one central location, which can make the data easier to navigate and more insightful.
A Safer Way to Drive Traffic
URL shorteners provide a safer way to drive traffic to your website. Because shortened links are less likely to be copied and shared, they aren’t as likely to be clicked on by malicious users.
This means you can more safely drive traffic to your website, without worrying about being hacked. URL shorteners are also a safer way to drive traffic because they can protect your brand reputation.
Some shortened links might link to inappropriate or offensive content, which can tarnish your brand reputation. With a URL shortener, you can choose which links to redirect to specific pages, which helps protect your brand reputation.
Two-Way Communication with Users
You can also use a shortened link to initiate two-way communication with your website visitors. You can use a shortened link to prompt users to leave a comment or send you feedback.
This allows you to collect feedback from your audience and engage with your users. Shortened links are also useful for creating surveys.
You can create a shortened link that redirects users to a survey, which makes it easier for them to respond to the survey. This can help you collect important data from your audience and make more informed marketing decisions.
Best Free Link Shortener:
1. Bitly
Bitly: Bitly is one of the best free link shortening services out there. When you shorten a link using the free version, it will insert a “Powered by Bitly” watermark underneath the link.
The paid version removes the watermark and lets you customize the link’s URL. In addition, you can schedule the link’s expiration date, choose which Bitly network to post to (e.g. Facebook, Twitter, etc.), and select a format for the shortened link, such as QR code, plain text, a telephone number, etc. Bitly has been a trusted and reliable link shortener for many years, even though it is completely free and does not require you to create an account.
One of the best things about Bitly is that you can track the performance of your links. The Bitly interface lets you view clicks, opens, shares, and all other statistics related to your links, which is a feature you will not find in any other free link shortener.
Here are some reasons why you should use Rebrandly as your primary URL shortener for your next marketing campaign.
- Real-time analytics
- Customized hyperlinks
- Seamless device integration
- Safe hyperlinks
2. Rebrandly
Rebrandly is the best URL shortener for your marketing campaign because it’s easy to use, it’s free and it allows you to monitor views with their tracking tools. Rebrandly makes URL shortening accessible with a user-friendly interface that anyone can understand.
Rebrandly has been the go-to URL shortener for marketers for years. There’s a reason for that: This leading link shortening service makes it easy to rebrand sponsored links in all kinds of ways. You can even create custom branded link templates and share them privately with other users.
Rebranding your shortened links is a great way to make them more memorable, personal, and relevant. But why choose Rebrandly over other link shorteners? There are many other options out there, including Google’s own link sharing services or Bitly.
That’s why many services and websites use a shortened version of a link called an ‘URL Shortener’ to make things easier for people. If you need help creating your rebranded links or just want to know more about them, keep reading!
To get the most out of your marketing campaigns, you need to make things as easy as possible for your users. URL shorteners are a great way to do this.
Many services and websites use a shortened version of a link called an ‘URL Shortener’ to make things easier for people. With a short link, you can fit more links in a single tweet or post, making it much easier to share information.
You can even use it on your email signature or website to make it easier for people to find your content or get in touch!
Here are the advanced features of Rebrandly:
- Devoted onboarding
- Customized analytics
- Deep linking management
- Traffic routing
- Training and support
- Collaboration
- Domain name management
3. Short.io
You’re probably wondering why Short.io is the best URL shortener for your marketing campaign. Well, there are five reasons to consider it:
- It’s user-friendly and easy to use: The user-friendly interface makes Short.io the best URL shortener for your marketing campaign. The platform is easy to navigate, and there are different templates to choose from. It’s also easy to create custom links and access analytics, which can help you track your success.
- It’s reliable: The best URL shortener for your marketing campaign should be reliable and trustworthy. Short.io is a reliable platform that can handle thousands of links. It has high availability and can withstand high traffic volumes.
- It’s affordable: The best URL shortener for a marketing campaign should be affordable and accessible. You can start a free plan with Short.io, and there are additional features you can unlock when you upgrade.
- It’s customizable: The best URL shortener for a marketing campaign should be customizable to your specific needs. Short.io features a fully customizable platform that allows you to create custom links.
- It’s scalable: The best URL shortener for your marketing campaign should be scalable to meet your evolving needs. Short.io is a scalable platform that can grow your business.
4. Bit.do
Bit.do is a unique link shortener that gives you more bang for your buck. The service offers the same shortened links as many other services, but it also comes with some additional features to make it stand out. You can create a new Bit.do links to share with others or go through the recently created links and use them as you see fit. You can shorten any link using this website, not just those that support Bit.do as a destination.
Anything you shorten will have an associated private access code which others will need to view your link after they’ve clicked on it. You can also add custom icons to your shortened links if you want to make them stand out from other shortened links even more than usual; however, these are only visual enhancements and do not provide any special functionality or benefits beyond appearances alone.
Features and Limitations
Like any other service, Bit.do is not without its limitations. While the service does offer some benefits, you will want to make sure you understand these limitations so that you can decide whether it’s worth using the service for your needs.
With Bit.do, you will be able to create short, long links alike and able to share only links of a maximum length of 80 characters when using the URL shortening function. Also, able to view statistics for all of your links, but not be able to track individual links.
This means that you will be able to see the overall information for all of the links you’ve used, but you won’t be able to view stats for individual links.
5. Clickmeter
Clickmeter is a website analytics tool and URL shortener that tracks your website traffic and provides detailed reports. This helps you to understand user behaviour, drive more traffic to your site and make data-driven decisions. Clickmeter can be used to track your audience and understand how they are interacting with your site.
It can be used to increase your site’s traffic and make data-driven decisions. The data collected by Clickmeter can be used to create engaging content and target your audience. This can help you to increase your site’s traffic and generate more leads.
It can also, be used to analyse data from any type of device; desktop, mobile or tablet. It also tracks the behavior of your visitors on your website, even if they are not logged in. It can also track the actions taken after visiting your site. Clickmeter can be used for free with limited features or you can choose a paid subscription plan based on your business needs.
6. Cutt.ly
Cutt.ly has been described as a “new breed” of link shortening services because of its unique set of features and target market.
Unlike other link shortening services that are focused on making links look nicer or more secure, Cutt.ly is geared towards content marketers and anyone who needs to track the performance of their content marketing efforts.
As a result, the service offers a number of features that are designed to help you monitor the performance of your content marketing efforts. As you begin to use the service, you’ll notice that all of your shortened links have tracking codes built into them.
This means that each time someone clicks on your links, you’ll have the option to see where they came from, what they did while they were on your site, and where they went after they left.
This data can help you figure out what types of content are resonating with your audience and which types aren’t, allowing you to make more informed decisions about your content strategy moving forward.
7. TinyURL
TinyURL is a service that lets you create shorter and more memorable URLs for links. Whether you’re sharing a link with a friend or linking to a website on your blog, a shorter URL is almost always more convenient.
On the back end, TinyURL works by taking the long, confusing URL you enter and shortening it down to something more manageable. The short version is typically a string of letters and numbers, sometimes with a word or two thrown in.
Why Use a TinyURL Service?
As we’ve seen, shortened URLs are great for a number of reasons. They take up less space and are easier to remember than the original URL, meaning that you can share links with others more easily.
If you create shortened URLs for your own blog posts, you can link to them in different places and make your blog post contents more shareable. This can help you get your blog posts seen and reposted, which can in turn help you build your followers and your blog’s reputation.
When you click a shortened link, the website opens in a new tab or window. This means that your current page doesn’t change, and you can easily go back and forth between the two pages. With a regular long URL, you’d have to copy it, paste it into the address bar, click “enter,” and then go back to your original page. This is much more cumbersome and time-consuming.
Wrap-up
URL shorteners are a very important part of a company’s digital marketing strategy. A shortened link makes it easier for people to copy and share your content, which means more exposure for your brand. It’s also easier for people to type in your links since they are shorter.
